Think We'd All Like to Know
by V.G. Marks
Summary: Zacharias knows that Cedric is the real Hogwarts Champion.  CD&ZS Slash, missing GoF canon.


**Title:** Think We'd All Like to Know  
**Pairing: **Cedric Diggory/Zacharias Smith, implied Cedric/Cho  
**A/N: **Hey, that Goblet of Fire movie sure gets the old creative muses going, doesn't it? Gah, I love Cedric so much, and this bunny wouldn't leave me alone. Contains slash (boy/boy kissing) and direct quotes from _Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire_ and _Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix._ For the record, I was picturing a football in the British sense, not the American one. :) Reviews are lovely, and this is a one-shot!

_---_

_"The Hogwarts champion," he called, "is Cedric Diggory!"_

---

Zacharias was nearly trampled by the rush of people trying to congratulate Cedric, but that was the way things always were with him. How couldn't they be? It'd probably been a century since a boy had been such a model Hufflepuff -- loyal, fair, smart, handsome. Of course, that made him sound more like a dog than like Cedric because Cedric was so much more than that.

Cedric was _Cedric_. And now he was representing Hogwarts. It was fitting -- what's more, it was deserved.

_---_

_The fire in the goblet had just turned red again. Sparks were flying out of it. A long flame shot suddenly into the air, and borne upon it was another piece of parchment._

_Automatically, it seemed, Dumbledore reached out a long hand and seized the parchment. He held it out and stared at the name written upon it. There was a long pause, during which Dumbledore stared at the slip in his hands, and everyone in the room stared at Dumbledore. And then Dumbledore cleared his throat and read out - "Harry Potter."_

---

"No, the grip's all wrong," said Cedric, rising up so his broom was level with Zacharias. He reached over and placed one large hand over Zacharias's; it took a lot of effort not to blush at that.

"I'm never going to get this," Zacharias griped, but shifted his hands into the correct position. "I can't even practice properly because of this damned hero tournament of yours!"

Cedric let go and flew a lazy circle around him, pausing once he was upside down. "You will, Smith. Who's going to lead the Hufflepuffs to eternal glory once I'm gone?"

Zacharias scoffed. "You'll still be here next year, loser! Like we'd ever be able to get rid of you."

Cedric laughed and flew toward the broomshed at top speed.

_---_

_SUPPORT CEDRIC DIGGORY--_

_THE REAL HOGWARTS CHAMPION!_

_"Like them, Potter?" said Malfoy loudly as Harry approached. "And this isn't all they do - look!"_

_He pressed his badge into his chest, and the message upon it vanished, to be replaced by another one, which glowed green:_

_POTTER STINKS!_

---

Zacharias gasped as he was yanked into a nearby classroom.

"Take that thing off."

"What?"

Cedric stalked toward him, loomed over him, glowered. "_That_," he said, placing his warm hand over Zacharias's chest. "Take it off."

Zacharias's fingers itched to cover Cedric's, but he just rolled his eyes. "Aw, Ced, lighten up, it's just a joke! It's not like Potter has a bloody chance against--"

"You don't need to resort to that if you really support me." There was an unsaid _if you're my friend_.

There was so much...something in Cedric's expression, it almost hurt Zacharias to look at him. "All right," he said. "All right. No need to get your knickers in a twist."

Then, as though nothing happened, the storm cloud cleared from Cedric's face and everything was back to normal. Zacharias breathed a sigh of relief.

"Want to fly later?" asked Cedric.

"You know I do."

Cedric beamed at him.

_---_

_And then, after about fifteen minutes, Harry heard the deafening roar that could mean only one thing: Cedric had gotten past his dragon and captured the golden egg._

_"Very good indeed!" Bagman was shouting. "And now the marks from the judges!"_

---

"You're holding that thing like it's a football," said Zacharias, smiling.

Cedric shot him a questioning look. "What's a football?"

"Never mind," Zacharias said. He forgot that Cedric wasn't a half-blood sometimes. Most of the people he knew were. "So, what's the clue?"

"Dunno," Cedric replied with a sigh. "But Moody said he'd seen eggs like these before, and maybe taking a bath would help. The bloke's bloody out of his mind, but he knows his stuff, so me and the egg are headed to the Prefect's bath."

Zacharias laughed, picturing Cedric bathing with the egg, then suddenly choked on the sound, picturing _Cedric bathing_ with the egg. He closed his eyes and mentally shook himself, and when he opened them again, Cedric was watching him.

"Did you-- did you want to help me?" Cedric asked, and he wasn't quite looking Zacharias in the eye, more at his mouth, and that question couldn't have meant what Zacharias thought it did. But Zacharias's stomach was flipping and his face had gone hot, like his body had figured out exactly what Cedric meant before his brain had a chance to catch up.

He felt himself nodding, though, body still in the lead. "Yeah. Yes, I do."

"Meet me back here in twenty minutes, then," said Cedric, and he still wasn't smiling, but he still was _looking_.

Zacharias gulped, and turned, and ran toward his dorm.

_---_

_Harry called after her, before he could stop himself._

_"Who're you going with?"_

_"Oh -- Cedric," she said. "Cedric Diggory."_

_"Oh right," said Harry._

_His insides had come back again. It felt as though they had been filled with lead in their absence._

---

"It's nothing," Cedric assured Zacharias. "Just appearances."

Zacharias nodded, but his insides felt like they'd turned to lead.

_---_

_Feeling enormously relieved, Harry watched Cedric pull a knife out of his pocket and cut Cho free. He pulled her upward and out of sight._

---

"What the hell was that, Cedric? She's the thing you'd miss most? Appearances, my arse!"

"There's no way they would know what's going on between us," Cedric protested, exhaling hard. "They-- they just guessed because we went to the ball together, and we walk around holding hands a fair bit. Cho's just my friend!"

Zacharias seethed. He felt bitter, and it ate away at his stomach; that made things a bit easier to deal with.

Cedric grabbed him by the shoulders, gripped him hard, and shook. "I'm not lying to you. When do I lie to anyone?"

"You lie to _everyone_," shouted Zacharias, trying to wrench away from Cedric's grip. "Everyone. No one knows about-- it's a big _lie_, and--"

Cedric kissed him, hard, and Zacharias struggled to pull away. He stopped, gave up, kissed back, because Cedric was good and loyal and didn't lie, and Zacharias deserved this. Deserved Cedric, damn it.

"I'll tell everyone about us after the third task. _The Daily Prophet_ won't be interested in me and everything will go back to normal then," Cedric said, pressing his forehead to Zacharias's. For some reason, Zacharias felt close to tears. "After the third task, I promise! Remember that!"

Zacharias sighed and nodded and believed and let Cedric kiss him again.

_---_

_"Remember Cedric. Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave, because he strayed across the path of Lord Voldemort. Remember Cedric Diggory."_

---

Zacharias wasn't numb. He was _angry_ because no one would tell him anything. No one deserved this. Especially not Cedric. Never Cedric.

He wouldn't forget.

_---_

_"All Dumbledore told us last year was that Cedric Diggory got killed by You-Know-Who and that you brought Diggory's body back to Hogwarts. He didn't give us details, he didn't tell us exactly how Diggory got murdered, I think we'd all like to know -- "_

**END.**


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